Salto do Cabrito — Attraction in Ribeira Grande

It was an ok experience. If you are passing by to go to Lagoa do Fogo or the thermal pools, then yes sure, you can stop by and have a look. They are nice but it's nothing outworldly, there's a small noisy hydroelectric plant next to the waterfall and there's concrete everywhere up until the waterfall. I didn't have time to go to other waterfalls but for what I've heard and seen, they were definitely better (e.g. salto do prego). On the other hand it seems like it was a bit empty, but you can judge yourself from my picture. For parking you have to choices, you can go all the way down with the car through a paved road with a huge inclination (doubt my rentla Fiat Panda would have made it) or you can park at the fork and walk down (if you trust more in your leg power than in your car's horse power). Beware, it is not a fun...

This is off a signposted turning from the EN5-2A on the way to and from Lake Fogo. The dirt track (partially paved) goes straight initially up to a white building in a small clearing where cars can be parked for free. From there a branch of the road to the left goes steeply downhill and we didn't try this with our rental car due to a fallen tree but it should be fine - and this can be walked for about 10 minutes to get to the waterfall (but steep). See the photos. The waterfall is past a stream and dam and part of the power plant. There is a metal staircase on the side through the forest that seems to go up to the top of the waterfall. The waterfall itself is not that special but it's a pleasant spot. The water felt a little too cold to jump...

Beautiful waterfall even during the dry summer season. You can bathe here or just enjoy the view. This is definitely not the best waterfall you can find on the island but worth the visit. Since it is quite near Ponta Delgada and easily accessible it can get quite crowded. The best time to visit it is early in the morning. The big flaw for me is that you hear the sound of hydro power plant near the waterfall. It is qute disturbing and you can't enjoy nature.

Even though parking is very large, I advise you to park at the very top beacuse the access road is very narrow, steep and there is no space for 2 cars to pass by. If you want to avoid unnecessary risks with your rented car, just take a 5 minute...